Elk study underway at Camp Guernsey

Cheyenne, WY.   –   The Wyoming Game and Fish Department partnered with the Wyoming Military Department to capture and collar elk at the Camp Guernsey Joint Training Center and on neighboring private lands in January.

The purpose of the project is to define seasonal ranges, map habitat use, identify migration movement, document calving areas, estimate adult survival, and map habitat use as it relates to recent fire activity and military training. The area covers Elk Hunt Area 3 in eastern Wyoming.

Biologists fitted 29 cow elk with GPS collars and will track the animals for three years. The GPS collars will provide the elk’s locations three times a day.

The Wyoming Military Department is a state agency that supports the Wyoming National Guard. “This is a great opportunity to partner with the Game and Fish and surrounding landowners to find out more about elk use and movement patterns on and adjacent to Camp Guernsey,” said Amanda Thimmayya, Natural Resource Manager with the Wyoming Military Department. The military training area within the Rawhide Hills provides important year-round habitat for elk, as well as a number of other wildlife species.  Native Range Capture Services, a privately-owned wildlife capture company, assisted with the project.